Bolts come from behind again, beat Trois-Riviéres in ninth
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CRESTWOOD, IL – James Dunlap’s two-run single in the bottom of the ninth inning capped a four-run comeback as the ThunderBolts took game one from the Trois-Riviéres Aigles 5-4 at Ozinga Field Saturday night.
Trois-Riviéres (0-1) got off to a hot offensive start, scoring a pair of runs on three hits in the second inning. They doubled that lead with solo home runs the next two frames from Emmanuel Tapia and Lizandro Rodriguez, making it 4-0 in the fourth.
The ThunderBolts (2-0) got their first hit of the night on a Michael Sandle single leading off the fourth. He scored three batters later on a base hit from Carlos Pena.
The Bolts continued to chip away with a single run in the sixth. A Sandle single and two errors loaded the bases with no outs and Pena hit a sacrifice fly. Alexander Castro came out of the Trois-Riviéres bullpen and retired all three batters he faced, halting the Windy City rally.
It remained 4-2 into the bottom of the ninth inning, when Victor Cerny hit a leadoff home run, cutting the deficit to one. Spence Coffman followed with a single and Jared Beebe walked, putting the winning run on base. After a bunt single from Josue Urdaneta loaded the bases, Dunlap came through with the game-winning hit.
Justin Lovell (1-0) picked up his first professional win with a scoreless eighth inning. In all, three ThunderBolt relievers combined to toss five scoreless frames. Luis Rodriguez (0-1) took the loss. He faced four batters in the ninth inning and could not record an out.
The Bolts’ season-opening home stand concludes with a doubleheader on Sunday afternoon. Kevin Figueredo makes his Windy City debut on the mound in game one against Trois-Riviéres’ Mike Hansell. On a special JULIE Family Sunday at Ozinga Field, all moms receive a free ticket. First pitch for game one is slated for 1:05 and broadcast details can be found at wcthunderbolts.com.
